Twist pioneer Chubby Checker, 71, is suing HP over an obscure app on the largely abandoned webOS which shares his name. The “Chubby Checker” says it can help shed light on the private measurements of strangers based on their shoe size.

The 1.5MB, $0.99 app, which first appeared on ironically named House of Palm in 2010, promises customers a way to check someone’s “chubby” based on their shoe size. This, Checker’s lawyers assert, has caused “irreparable damage and harm” and the only remedy to save Checker’s name is $500 million from HP, Palm’s owner.

According to House of Palm, the app is described as: “Any of you ladies out there just start seeing someone new and wondering what the size of there [sic] member is.All you need to do is find out the man’s shoe size and plug it in and don’t worry where your [sic] from because The Chubby Checker supports shoe measurements of different regions and types. Now with The Chubby Checker there is no need for disappointment or surprise…”

Attorney Willie Gary said in a statement that the lawsuit is “about preserving the integrity and legacy of a man who has spent years working hard at his musical craft and earned the position of one of the greatest musical entertainers of all time”.

Willie Gary warns that he and the world “cannot sit idly and watch as technology giants or anyone else exploits the name or likeness of an innocent person with the goal of making millions of dollars”.

According to TCPalm and the Guardian, the app has been downloaded just 84 times, which means that if Chubby gets his way he’ll be earning $5.8 million per download.

An HP spokesperson commented: “The application was removed in September 2012 and is no longer on any Palm or HP hosted web site.”